


Us

by NeverAndAlways



Series: Rewrites [1]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Childbirth, Established Castiel/Dean Winchester, Established Gabriel/Sam Winchester, Fic Rewrite, Gen, M/M, Mpreg, Not Beta Read, Pregnancy, Pregnant Gabriel, Swearing, Trickster Gabriel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-13
Updated: 2015-10-13
Packaged: 2018-04-25 03:01:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,719
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4944250
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NeverAndAlways/pseuds/NeverAndAlways
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Hello again, writer's block.</p><p>(another fic rewrite, this time 'Ours', to get me back on track)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Us

The sun sets behind Bobby's house. It's a cool Fall evening, but the windows are all open wide; a breeze picks up, shaking the trees and sending a leaf or two skittering across the roof. Crickets chirp in the distance. It's peaceful.

Inside the house, though, is a different story: the tension in the air is almost palpable. Bobby fusses around like the old mother-hen he would never admit to being, while Sam and Castiel hover nervously. And the source of the tension is laying on the couch, wearing only boxer shorts and a T-shirt that barely covers his nine-months belly. Gabriel has been in labor for most of the day now. He's about ready to wring his boyfriend's neck. Anyone's neck, for that matter. Whatever takes the edge off the contractions. Being not-exactly-human has its benefits; this is not one of them. Suddenly restless, he abandons the book he's been trying - and failing - to read and levers himself up onto his elbows. Easy enough; now he just has to get up the rest of the way. He swings one leg off the couch, then the other, but when he tries to stand up...he can't. Goddammit.

"Sam...?" he calls. His boyfriend materializes at the foot of the stairs.

"Yeah?"

"I need to move. Help me up?"

Sam nods and crosses the room to the couch. He takes his boyfriend by the wrists and, on a count of three, pulls him to his feet. It takes a moment for Gabriel to catch his balance, allowing Sam to put an arm around his shoulders.

"Any progress?" he asks as Gabriel massages his belly. The Trickster shrugs.

"A little. 'Bout...eight minutes. Maybe less."

Sam smiles. "That's good."

"Not good enough." Gabriel looks down at his belly. "I just want him out, I wanna meet him."

"I know. So do I." Sam's hand joins Gabriel's where it rests just above his navel. "And we will. We just have to wait a little while."

Now Gabriel smirks. "I think there's more to it than just waiting, Sam." he jokes, but his smirk fades a moment later. He rocks forward on the balls of his feet, then back again, and his expression closes down completely. "Ngh...time to move."

"Where to?"

"I dunno. Wherever." his voice is tight; the closer the contractions get, the harder it is to string words together. But Sam seems to understand. He nods and gently steers his boyfriend toward the front door.

"Cas?" he calls over his shoulder. "Gabe and I are gonna walk around the block."

"Are you sure that's wise, Gabriel?" Castiel appears from the kitchen, a mug of tea in his hands. The guy is unflappable. But with Gabriel's Grace pretty much dormant, one of them has to be. He's angel enough for both of them. He cocks his head slightly. "You shouldn't wear yourself out."

Gabriel's sure he has some really snarky comeback to this, but it's lost in the contraction with everything else. "'m fine, Cas." is all he can say.

Cas shrugs. "Very well." then he disappears back into the kitchen, leaving Sam and Gabriel to continue their trek.

\---

They make it about halfway down the street before the next one finds him. He leans into Sam, and they both stop. Sam puts an arm around him.

"Gabe, you're shaking."

"I know," Gabriel grabs a fistful of his boyfriend's shirt to keep himself upright. "I- I can't-" he starts to sag forward, and Sam has to catch him by the shoulders.

"It's okay, I got you. Just relax." Sam eases him to the ground. He crouches there, panting, bathed in light from the streetlamps, until it's over. Then he shifts forward onto his knees.

"That was fast."

"Six minutes." says Sam. "You said you wanted it over with."

Gabriel lets out a soft whine. "Not that fast."

Sam smiles fondly and stands up. "Let's keep going. Think you can stand yet?"

"I don't...I think so."

After much huffing and puffing and with Sam holding onto his arm, Gabriel slowly gets to his feet. He stands for a moment, shaky but stable, then takes a step - and goes down like a brick. Sam grabs him, lowers him back to the ground and shouts for Cas. The angel is there in seconds.

"I did tell you." he says coolly as the three of them make their way back down the street. His brother just rolls his eyes.

\---

They get Gabriel inside just in time: the next contraction hits hard. It leaves Gabriel keening into his boyfriend's shoulder, just barely standing upright. Castiel leaves the room at that point, for his own good as much as theirs. Human emotions are overwhelming, especially powerful ones like these. Even on Gabriel. Especially on Gabriel.

He passes Dean in the hallway, coming back from the kitchen with a glass of water.

"Hey."

"Hello, Dean."

A pointed silence makes him turn around. Dean is standing half-in, half-out of his room, looking back at him. "How, uh..." he clears his throat awkwardly. "How's he doin'?"

"As well as can be expected. It will be several hours yet before anything really happens."

Dean looks horrified. "Still? Jeez, poor guy."

As if on cue, a pained noise echoes down the hall from Sam and Gabriel's room. Cas glances toward it; when he looks back, Dean is gone. Odd for a Hunter to be so squeamish...he pads away.

\---

"'The hell took you so long?" Gabriel snaps. His brother pauses in the doorway, a little taken aback.

"Gabe," Sam soothes, "he's barely been gone ten minutes."

"...Whatever." Gabriel goes back to swaying, bent over the foot of the bed. Cas deposits his armload of towels on the nightstand and passes a questioning look to Sam. Sam shrugs.

"You know what?" says Gabriel suddenly.

"What?"

"This really sucks." Gabriel looks up at Sam and Cas. His hair, so carefully combed back most of the time, hangs in strands around his face. "Wish I could just, y'know..." he snaps his fingers. "all of it. Contractions and everything. I just...oh." the tension starts at his midsection and creeps its way up; he grimaces. "Ohh shit. Sam-"

"Right here, I gotcha." Sam crosses the room, sort of gathers him up. They make quite a picture, the six-foot Hunter and the five-foot Trickster. Gabriel only comes up to his shoulder. Sam moves as he does, slowly back and forth, one hand between his shoulderblades and the other in his hair. Gabriel, for his part, buries his face in Sam's shirt and moans his way through it. And he very nearly breaks Sam's shoulder as it reaches full swing.

The contractions come and go, each one a little closer on the heels of the last. Watching from across the room, Cas thinks he's never seen his brother look so tired and vulnerable. Even with the belly, he looks like a smaller version of himself. It's hard to connect this person with the man he knows as Gabriel.

Gabriel makes his way around the room as the night goes on. Leaning on the walls, leaning on Sam and Cas...by 10:00, he's at eight centimeters. By midnight, nine. And he talks his way through it, just like he does everything, right up until he hits the transition. His words all but leave him then. Well, all except the curses; he still has plenty of those.

"Shit. Shit, shit, **shit** -" Gabriel presses his forehead into the mattress, the blankets muffling his voice. "Fuck! Cas, can't you...can't you fucking do something about this??"

"About as much as you can, Gabriel." says Cas from his seat on the bed. It's almost 2:00 a.m.; they're all tired, and they all want this to be over, but not half as much as Gabriel does. He's spent the past hour kneeling by the bed, completely at the mercy of his contractions. Sam hasn't left his side once.

Cas, on the other hand, is realizing he'd like to be elsewhere. This feels like something he shouldn't see, much less be a part of. And seeing his brother like this is...it's difficult. So he's more than happy to oblige when there are supplies to be gotten. He takes his time getting towels, water, whatever else, just so he can take a few breaths in relative peace. On his fifth supply run he ends up in the kitchen, palms flat on the tiled counter, trying to will himself calm. Arms snake around him from behind; he looks back into green eyes.

"Doin' okay?" asks Dean.

"Whom?"

"Who d'you think?"

Cas sighs. "I'm fine. So is Sam."

"Gabriel?"

Another slow breath. "He is...in pain. But the worst is nearly over."

"Mm."

There are no more words for several minutes. Dean rests his chin on Cas' shoulder. Cas shuts his eyes and tries not to hear the sounds coming from the bedroom. Calm down, Castiel. Everything is under control; Sam has it well in-hand. Just a few minutes and then you-

"Cas! Need you!!"

Damn. He sprints back to the bedroom; there he finds Gabriel, already in mid-push, with Sam holding him up. Gabriel snaps back to himself at the end of the push, looking around wildly. He finds his brother, zeroes in and reaches for him. They connect briefly as Cas helps Sam heft him onto the bed, but then he's gone again. He folds around his belly and ends up half-kneeling, half-squatting on the mattress, then he's throwing himself into another push before Cas and Sam can catch up. He's calling the shots now; they move with him, Cas behind and Sam to the front. Sam catches his gaze when he surfaces. The Trickster's eyes swirl molten gold for a moment, a reflection of the angel that's still in there somewhere. He looks half-feral. It even scares Cas. But Sam smiles.

"So proud of you, Gabe."

Gabriel snarls at him. Sam reaches out; he ignores him completely and bows his head to bear down again. He groans, curls forward and pushes until he's out of breath. "...No."

"No?"

"This isn't gonna work." Gabriel gasps. "Need to move."

"Alright. Lead the way." Sam steps back. After casting around for a second or two Gabriel pitches sideways. His upper leg curls instinctively toward his chest, almost resting on his belly, and he hooks his arm behind his knee. And judging by the sound the next contraction tears from him, it works. There's an urgent, almost desperate tone to his voice.

"Sam...!"

"I'm here. Just breathe through this one, okay? You're almost crowning." Sam takes his boyfriend's hand. "Cas, you hold onto him, keep him open." Cas nods and - with some reluctance - takes hold of his brother's knee pulls it up and back. The contraction is reaching its peak now; Gabriel's face contorts with the effort of trying not to push. "You're doing great."

Gabriel gulps in a couple lungfuls of air before the next contraction starts. "Can I-?"

"Go for it." the words have barely left Sam's mouth before Gabriel starts to push again. His free hand clamps down on Sam's wrist so hard, he's sure he hears something crack. The curve of the baby's head slides forward another inch. "That's good, do it again."

The Trickster spits out some really foul Enochian word. "Fuck, it burns-!" he gives a short, half-hearted push. "Sam, he's too big, I can't..."

"Yes you can. He's coming, Gabe, I promise. Just push."

Gabriel meets his gaze. His eyes are back to hazel, but still have a faint sheen of gold. They snap shut as the next contraction closes over him. He has no choice but to push, so he puts all his strength into it, bearing down with a growl.

"There you go! One more just like that." Sam leans in to support the baby's head as it turns. The shoulders come, then the arms. Then, with a groan so deep Sam feels it in his ribs, Gabriel pushes their son into the world. Sam beams. "Gabe, you did it!" he goes to gather the baby into his arms, but something stops him. His face falls. "...Shit."

Gabriel sits up immediately. "What? Sam, what's wrong?"

"Cord's around his neck." Sam hisses. He unwraps it and turns the tiny body over in his arms. It's grayish-blue and completely limp. Sam clears the baby's mouth and nose, rubs its back with one huge hand. "C'mon buddy, breathe for me. You can do it." he turns the baby over again and massages its chest instead. Still nothing. Gabriel sits motionless, breathing fast and sharp. "Come on, please-!"

"Sam. Here." Castiel stands up, speaking for the first time since this started. He holds out his arms. Sam passes the tiny, lifeless body to him, and he holds it close. He lays one slender hand on its chest and shuts his eyes; his lips move silently.

Seconds pass like years. Suddenly, a sound from Cas' arms: a gurgle, a hiccup. Then the baby opens his little mouth and bawls, and a sigh of relief goes around the room. Cas grins. And Gabriel dissolves. Tears stream from his eyes as Cas hands the baby over to him. He looks up at Sam, beaming through the tears, and the rest of the world is gone.

\---

Cas finally slips away nearly an hour later. The old house is dead silent, and he shivers a little in the chilly night air. And there's no one in sight, until he turns the corner into the main room and finds Dean dozing on the couch. Cas doesn't say anything; he doesn't need to. Dean is a light sleeper. In no time, he jerks awake.

"What the hell d'you-?!" his eyes focus. His expression softens a bit. "Cas, don't sneak up on me, man."

"My apologies."

"'S'alright." Dean drags a hand over his eyes. "How's Gabe? Did he...?" he gestures vaguely.

"Yes."

"And?"

"It's a boy." Cas pulls up as much of a smile as his tired brain will allow. "Come and meet him."

The pair shuffle back to the bedroom. Gabriel is barely awake; he's curled up in bed with the baby - now pink and alert and very much alive - in his arms and Sam by his side. Their conversation trails off.

"Congrats." Dean sits down next to his brother. "How's it feel to be a dad?"

"Exhausting." Gabriel croaks. "I'm too old for this shit."

Dean smirks. "He's a cute kid, though."

"'Course he is, he takes after me." the Trickster grins with no small amount of parental pride.

Now Sam speaks up. "Gave us one hell of a scare, though; came out blue, with the cord around his neck. Thought we'd lost him 'till Cas stepped in." all eyes turn briefly to Cas, who immediately looks at his feet.

"...Damn." Dean reaches out and grazes the baby's downy hair with his fingertips. "Glad you decided to stick around, little guy." then, to Sam: "you guys got your work cut out for you."

"Yeah. He's gonna be a troublemaker."

"I should hope so." says Gabriel. "He's the Trickster's kid, I'd be disappointed if he wasn't..." he interrupts himself with a massive yawn.

Dean has to bite back a yawn of his own. "I agree. Time for some shut-eye." he stands up, stretches, smiles to Sam and Gabriel. "Congrats, guys."

After a chorus of goodnights, they file out of the room...or at least Cas does. Dean hesitates. He watches as his brother fusses over Gabriel (already asleep) and the baby. At length Sam glances up and notices him.

"D'you need something, Dean?"

"Nah. Just wondering if you're ever gonna give up and go to bed." Sam rolls his eyes. "Guess I can't really call you my baby brother anymore."

"I guess not." Sam pauses by the doorway. He and Dean look each other up and down for an instant. Then Dean reaches out and pulls him into a hug. This is a rare thing for them; any other time, Dean would've called it a chick-flick moment. This time, he just smiles.

"You did good. I'm proud of you."

Sam pulls away. There are tears in his eyes; definitely a chick-flick moment. "Go to bed, you sap."

Dean smirks as he heads for the door. "Goodnight, Sammy."

~~  ¤¤¤  ~~

**Author's Note:**

> If you liked the story, please leave a comment - I'd love to hear from you! :)


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